On December 6, 2019, St. Thomas Aquinas College President, Dr. Margaret Fitzpatrick, announced the appointment of Nicole Ryan as Director of Athletics.  Ryan served for the first three months of the 2019-2020 school year as the Acting Director of Athletics, following the retirement of long-time director Gerry Oswald, who led the department for 19 years.  

"Nicole is a hard-working, talented, and inspiring leader.  The College is fortunate to have her as its new Director of Athletics,” remarked Fitzpatrick.  "I am grateful to Dr. Fitzpatrick and  Dr. Manning for the opportunity to be the next Director of Athletics at St. Thomas Aquinas College.  The program has a history of success in the classroom, on the playing fields and in the community.  I look forward to adding to the strong tradition and continuing to "Make Success a Habit," stated Ryan.

Ryan has been at the college since May of 2008 when she was hired as an Assistant Coach for the  Women’s Basketball team. Shortly after, she also assumed the role of Head Coach for the Men’s & Women’s Cross Country teams.  Under her leadership, the cross country team flourished with the women’s program winning the ECC Championship in 2010 and 2012.  In 2010, Ryan was recognized as ECC Coach of the Year in Women’s Cross Country.  Her 2015 women’s team had one of their strongest regional performances and qualified for the NCAA National Championship.  

Before the end of her first year at STAC, Nicole was promoted to Assistant Director of Athletics and her administrative duties grew from there.  Some of the other positions she held were SAAC Advisor and Head Coach of the Women’s Soccer and Intramural Program for two seasons.  

In July of 2015 Nicole Ryan was promoted to Associate Director of Athletics, Senior Woman Administrator and Title IX Deputy Coordinator for Athletics.  

During her time at STAC she has served on numerous committees on campus such as the STAC CARE Committee, STAC Sustainability & Climate Change Committee and others.  She has also been an active member within the East Coast Conference and NCAA serving as the Conference Chair for Women's Basketball and on the NCAA Regional Advisory Committee for Women’s Basketball.

Prior to STAC, Nicole was a four year member of the women’s basketball team at New Jersey Institute of Technology.  She graduated from NJIT with a B.S. in Management in 2003 and completed her M.S. in Organizational Management in 2006.  After graduation, Nicole joined the women’s basketball coaching staff for four seasons.  

Nicole resides in Bardonia, NY with her husband Chad, her stepson Jake (8) and their newborn son, Austin.